


Illegitimi Non Carborundum

by AnaliseGrey



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Beau isn't sure about this but is willing to try bless her heart, Gen, HopePunk, Molly is the chaos and kindness he wishes to see in the world and you should be too, Molly isn't here for any of your grimdark bullshit, aggressive kindness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 05:58:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17238695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnaliseGrey/pseuds/AnaliseGrey
Summary: Sometimes the Mighty Nein came through a town, thwarted an evil or  nuisance, and were hailed as heroes. Alfield was an example of that, and it always felt nice to be lauded and celebrated, to be thanked for the danger they put themselves in. It was gratifying to be treated to a round of drink or a meal, to be offered a place to stay that wasn’t the back of a cart or a lumpy bedroll for an evening’s respite from the elements. Even just a smile and nod of thanks were nice and greatly appreciated.Then there were towns like Norfield.





	Illegitimi Non Carborundum

**Author's Note:**

> Illegitimi Non Carborundum- 'Don't let the bastards grind you down.'

Sometimes the Mighty Nein came through a town, thwarted an evil or nuisance, and were hailed as heroes. Alfield was an example of that, and it always felt nice to be lauded and celebrated, to be thanked for the danger they put themselves in. It was gratifying to be treated to a round of drink or a meal, to be offered a place to stay that wasn’t the back of a cart or a lumpy bedroll for an evening’s respite from the elements. Even just a smile and nod of thanks were greatly appreciated.

Then there were the towns like Norfield.

The good people of Norfield had been more than willing to accept the Might Nein’s assistance in ridding the town of the clutch of kobolds that had been harrying the area. Once that was taken care of, however, the people actually had a chance to interact with the Mighty Nein and the town’s feelings on tieflings became readily apparent, those feelings being less than civil. Jester was lucky in that she could disguise herself as human, but Molly wasn’t so easily hidden. The last straw was when the only inn in town refused to let Molly in the door. The whole party was tired, drained, and beat to hell from the fight, and Molly insisted he could just stay with the cart; he hadn’t wanted to keep everyone else from a good night’s rest in actual beds just because the people of Norfield had their collective head up their ass.

The rest of the Nein had made it very clear that wasn’t an acceptable solution, and they’d all bundled off to camp for the night a few miles down the road from the town. It wouldn’t be as nice as staying the night in an inn, but it would give them a head start in the morning, and, more importantly, meant they were all together. The evening was calm, all things considered; Jester had patched up the most seriously wounded, and everything else would keep until morning. It wasn’t as comfortable as an inn, but it was a lot more peaceful and probably safer than staying in the town would have been.

He and Beau pulled first watch for the evening. He’d settled on a log near the fire, content to sit quietly, moving his cards easily from hand to hand, but of course Beau wasn’t great at sitting quietly at the best of times.

“I can’t believe those assholes treated you like that.”

Molly looked up from his cards, though he continued shuffling them idly. “It’s not the first time something like that's happened, and it won’t be the last. Not everyone in the world is as civilized and open-minded as we are. I try not to let it bother me too much.”

Beau’s scowl deepened. “That’s kind of fucked up, though. You just shrug it off and move on? Someone ought to teach them that shit isn’t okay. You’re still a person. Jester is still a person. You shouldn’t have to hide who you are to be treated with respect or even common decency.”

Molly smiled and shrugged. “You’re right, but if I’ve learned anything from my travels, it’s that while you should absolutely try to spread kindness and tolerance, there are some people who just aren’t ready for it yet. You can hope that they get it someday, but it’s no use banging your head against a brick wall. Sometimes it’s better to save your energy and move on to fight another day.”

“Well screw ‘em anyways. Maybe we should have just let the kobolds have them and good riddance.”

“And this is where we’re going to disagree.” Molly wrapped the cards back in their cloth and tucked them away into a pocket in his coat. “Just because someone acts like an asshole doesn’t mean you don’t try to help them. Even assholes, for the most part, deserve to live. And the assholes aside, they aren’t the only ones living in that town, Beau. There were children there. Their parents are jerks, but who did they see defending the town? Maybe they’ll see two tieflings saving them from kobolds and it will make them stop and think about what their parents are teaching them. You never know what might cause a change in how people see things. We need to give them that chance to think differently.”

Beau looked at him in disbelief. “You don’t honestly think those kids are going to grow up any different than their parents are? I’ve seen towns like that, same as you, and nothing changes. Doesn’t matter how much good you try to push on them, how nice you are, they’re always going to be assholes, their children are going to be assholes, and all the generations after. There’s no helping people like that.”

“You’re such a ray of sunshine, Beau, it’s astounding more people don’t find you as tolerable as I do.”

Beau snorted. “You know most people are garbage. Even most of  _ us  _ are assholes, Jester notwithstanding- she’s a fucking delight- but the rest of us? C’mon. You know we’re assholes, too, just a different kind.”

“No,  _ fuck _ _that_."  Molly snapped. He turned to face Beau, leaning in. “You think what? That the world is inherently awful, and everyone is full of shit, and things as a whole are terrible and will always  _ be  _ terrible. Well, I’m sorry, but that is just an all around shitty way to live.” He gestured off into the distance, back toward Norfield. “You see those people, and the way they act, and you think they deserve everything bad that ever happens to them. You think it gives you the fucking  _ right _ to just write them off, wash your hands of them, and just walk away, without ever giving them a chance to change, without trying to show them there’s a different way. People aren’t born hateful, they have to be taught that, which means they can be taught how  _ not  _ to hate. Life isn’t, or shouldn’t be, about perfection, moral or otherwise. You have to fight for what’s right, and you more than anyone should know that you get dirty when you fight. Fights aren’t clean, they shouldn’t be; it’s not easy to do, but that doesn’t mean you don’t _do_ it.”

Molly sat back, suddenly very tired.

“People can be awful, Beau. People are shitty, and mean, and do terrible, ghastly things to one another; you and I both know it. But people can also be forgiving, and soft, and kind. You and I both know that, too, and it’s unfair to live your life only acknowledging one half of that equation. Not just to the world at large, but to yourself. There’s so much  _ goodness  _ out there, so much joy, just waiting to happen. But you have to  _ let  _ it.”

Beau eyed him, disbelief still evident on her face.

“Do you know how fucking crazy that sounds?” She cut him off before he could answer, gesturing at him. “You’ve been you for what, two years?  _ Two fucking years _ , Molly. That’s hardly anything. I don’t know what kind of life you had with the circus, or whatever the fuck you used to get up to, but let me tell you, I’ve had a lot more experience with people than you have, and people are  _ shitty _ . They will fuck you over, they will look for any sign of weakness you give them, and they will  _ use it _ and exploit it.”

Molly’s eyes narrowed, glinting in the light of the campfire. “First off- rude. Secondly, someday Beauregard,” his voice was measured, forcibly even. “Someday I hope to meet the people who shaped you into who you are so that I can have some  _ very strong words _ with them. Caring, being kind, those aren’t a sign of  _ weakness _ , Beau. In the world you describe, a world full of cynicism and- and  _ fear- _ choosing to care, and choosing to be kind, that’s an act of  _ rebellion _ , it’s not the act of someone who’s weak. Allowing yourself to care, allowing yourself to be vulnerable that way, necessitates an amazing amount of strength and courage. Being willing to open yourself to the potential for hurt, for the potential to  _ be  _ hurt, that’s its own kind of bravery. We put ourselves into a frankly ridiculous amount of danger on a regular basis, and I’ve  _ seen  _ you dive into combat. You don’t like to show it, but I know you care. I’ve seen you jump in to protect the others, to protect  _ me _ , when you didn’t have to, but it’s not just us. I’ve seen you help random people on the street, in the towns and cities we go through. You don’t do it because it’s safe, you do it because it’s  _ right _ . There’s so much darkness in the world already, Beau; why not be the light in the darkness when you can?”

He counted it as a win when she didn’t immediately open her mouth to argue, instead turning to stare at the fire, her arms crossed over her chest. There was quiet again for awhile, and he thought the discussion was done, but he should have known better than to think she’d let him have the last word in anything.

“Don’t let the bastards grind ya down, huh?”

“Something like that, yeah.”

They sat, watching the fields around them, the stars above; Beau added a few more pieces of wood to the fire before turning to him again.

“I think maybe I can get behind that. And it’s badass, right? Like, being aggressively kind. I dig it.”

Molly glanced over at her. “Only you would find a way to turn being kind into something antagonistic.”

Beau shrugged. “Hey, work to my strengths, right? Not like I’m going to be charming and shit like you.”

“Why Beauregard, that was almost a compliment. Well done, you.”

Instead of answering, she bumped her shoulder against his, her lips twitching up into the faintest semblance of a smile as they spent the rest of their watch in companionable quiet.

**Author's Note:**

> I was reading a tumblr post on hopepunk ([you can read it here](http://kitkatcabbit.tumblr.com/post/181219672147/thebibliosphere-archionblu)), and my first thought was 'wow, that sounds like Mollymauk', and hence this story was born.
> 
> Want to come flail, yell at me about these characters, or just say hi? Come find me on tumblr at [Analisegrey](http://analisegrey.tumblr.com/), or on twitter under the same handle.


End file.
